Last month, we looked back at the past year with our Summer Reality Check. This month, we’re looking forward. For many students, the hardest part of college is figuring out just how to study: You know, what you’re supposed to do outside of class so you’ll understand the lectures, ace the tests, and nail the papers. Many students have developed habits and strategies that get in the way of their success. For them – and perhaps for you – here are our top 12 tips on how not to study:

1. Don’t spend too much time looking for the perfect environment. Many students think that if only they found the perfect place to study, it would all be a cakewalk. So they spend inordinate amounts of time scouting and trying out various locales – first their dorm room, then the coffee shop, then the library, then the grass, etc. This can be a major time-waster and, worse, it can make you feel that you can’t study at all unless you’re in your ideal study spot. Better idea? Find a reasonably quiet place and just get started. You’ll feel more comfortable with your surroundings as you get more into the studying.

2. Don’t count prep work as studying. Some students do a lot of preparing or getting organized for studying, but they never get down to doing the actual studying. Don’t give yourself credit for studying when you’re actually just cleaning your desk, reorganizing the files on your laptop, or “getting ready” to study. And, of course, facebook time and IM-ing aren’t studying, even if they’re done at your study spot.

3. Don’t start with the no-brainers. Some students think that starting with the easiest tasks – or the ones they’re best at – will “ease them into” the material. Trouble is, when you get to the harder tasks, you still have the leap to make – and you’re more tired, too. Suggestion? Start with the hardest or most challenging task. Then move on to the assignments even a bozo could handle.

4. Don’t multitask. Believe it or not, some students study for all five of their courses in a single session: 15 minutes on this subject, 15 minutes on another, 15 minutes on a third – you get the picture. It’s a far better idea to devote your entire study session to only one subject. That way, you’ll really get into the material, build up speed, and, the more engaged you get, the easier the studying will become. Worst of all is to intersperse one subject with another – do 10 minutes of math, then give up and do 10 minutes of econ., then back to the math. That’s a recipe for guaranteed confusion.

5. Don’t discard the clues. Many professors give study questions to go with each reading, or, at least, say in class or on the syllabus what to focus on when tackling your assignment. Be sure to consider these all-important (and time-saving) suggestions before you start studying. And, if your class includes math problems or proofs, be sure to consult the problems done in lecture or section before taking off on the new ones. Often the homework problems are just variants or extensions of the work already done.

6. Don’t microfocus. Some students think the best studying is super-slow studying: reading every word, one by one; writing every word of their paper, one by one; preparing a presentation, one word at a time. But like any cognitive activity, studying is a process that takes place over time and gains strength by building up speed. If you focus too narrowly on the individual elements of what you’re doing, you lose sight of the main issues and suck the life out of the learning process.

7. Don’t just memorize. It’s useless to just shovel stuff into your mind that you don’t understand. If you really understand what you’re studying, you ought to able to explain the main ideas, in your own words, to someone who hasn’t studied the material (try it out on a roommate or friend). Take the time to think about and digest what you’re studying – instead of just preparing to parrot it back on some upcoming exam.

8. Don’t take constant breaks. You’re used to getting your content in140-character units, in 20-second bursts, or with lots of video to go with it. But studying is not like Twitter, YouTube, or Hulu. You need to have sustained attention to get the point of the reading or to see your way through the problem. Don’t allow yourself constant interruptions. Rule of thumb? One 10-minute break for every 50 minutes of studying. Look, we know it’s hard to break old habits. But doing so will prevent having to restart – and overcome your resistance – 20 times an hour.

9. Don’t forget to take notes. Be sure to take careful notes on all of the reading throughout the semester – notes you can refer back to when the midterm or final comes along. Though everyone has his or her own style of notetaking (and you should use whatever works best for you), we’ve found that it’s often best to take separate notes on a laptop or tablet (where you’ll actually be able to read what you’ve written), rather than cramming single words into the margins of the book or highlighting practically every word of the text in six different colors.

10. Never blow off two days in a row. Though nobody quite tells you this, you’re supposed to be studying every day of the week. If you’re supposed to be preparing, on average, two hours for each lecture hour — and you’re taking 15 hours of courses — then you’re supposed to be preparing 30 hours a week. It is hard to fit 30 hours of studying in only three days a week.

11. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Many students set elaborate study schedules and then beat themselves up when things don’t go quite according to plan: Maybe some task took longer than anticipated, maybe some additional materials were needed to complete the assignment, or maybe you were just tired or distracted that day. Don’t get all depressed when you haven’t kept 100-percent to your plan. Keep in mind that you’ll have many study sessions, and that remaining in a positive mood about your schoolwork is much more important than how any one study session – or, indeed, series of sessions — goes.

12. Don’t go it alone. If, in spite of your best efforts, you find yourself spending enormous amounts of time preparing for one class — or are always hopelessly behind in your studying for that class — go see the prof or TA. They’ve had loads of experience with students just like you and they can make practical suggestions about how you can get on the right track – a real lifesaver if, in spite of our How Not to Study Guide, you’re still having trouble studying.

I totally agree with the first one. It’s been a hard task for me, so it’s great to know I need only one thing–a place that’s reasonably quiet.

For the 3rd one, I have to say that starting with no-brainers can be an encouragement for my fellow unconfident students. It helps to oil out our thinking engines, and I do actually work better with the harder tasks once I get going. If I start on a harder task first, I might give up and not study for the rest of the night.

For the 4th one, I definitely have to multitask, because I have ADD. I don’t mind switching gears; it’s what my brain is good at. At one point, I could not sit still for one moment at all, that I would change subjects every 5 minutes just to force myself to keep studying (instead of giving up and not studying at all), and I actually got loads done.

For the 8th one, I half agree. I can study for 4 hours (breaks not included within 4 hours and 40 minutes. What I do is 30 minutes of studying, allowing myself two 45-second breaks within the 30 minutes. Then I do 3 minutes and 30 seconds of resting my head and closing my eyes, letting the neurons in my brain make and strengthen its connections. Then I do 1 minute and 30 seconds of physical activity, like jumping jacks, dancing, etc. This definitely helps with my hyperactiveness. Basically I just figured it out over 2 years in college. And I have one window with 4 tabs with online-stopwatch.com, so it’s not that hard to time my studying; it’s actually great.

I really like your 11th tip. One must forgive themselves. Instead of punishing yourself, encourage yourself to keep studying! I have to remember this tip.

I also really like your 12th tip! For my Organic Chemistry course, I went to all of the unrequired gorup sessions with a group leader (a student who recieved an A+ in the course), I applied for and obtained a private volunteer tutor through my university’s learning center, and I talked to my professor from time to time (although my prof was rather scary, I sucked it up and just talked). At the end, my prof was very understanding and knew just how hard I worked, and it definitely reflected on the grade I was given at the end. Always seek help when you need it!

this is very important….thanks chegg this year was tough on me…i lost my mum last year and thought of focusing hard in the spring..this actually cost me alot. My GPA dropped and i regret takin those classes..could you give advice for students who lost loved ones and how to manage that situation and college? it would really help.

Hi! First of all, sorry about your mother. My boyfriend passed away right before the beginning of spring semester. I can totally understand how you must have felt. Even though at times I wanted to give up studying as it felt like along with my heart I had also lost my brain and the ability to concentrate. But, the only thing that took my mind off of it was the overloading of classes and full-time work. I am not necessarily suggesting that you should go above and beyond nd take a lot of units however, I would suggest talking to a counselor and also your professors and inform of your situation. I would also recommend grief counseling. I wish you all the best in life.

Crispin,
For the semester just-passed, we have two tips: First, some colleges allow you to drop the whole semester, sometimes retroactively, in cases of extreme emergency (such as your own); Second, even if you can’t drop the whole semester, some colleges allow “grade forgiveness,” that is, taking one or more classes again, then having the new grade(s) replace the old ones.
For the upcoming semester, we’d recommend you consider taking the semester off, or perhaps, taking a reduced load (that is, fewer than the four or five courses you’re probably used to taking). Having some time off from college, or committing only some of your time to college work, might give you a chance to grieve and adjust to your new situation.
You might also consider seeing a grief-counselor (almost all colleges provide such service as part of their student health services); sometimes having a chance to talk to a professional and explore your feelings can be helpful. And some colleges or communities even offer grief support groups (where people who are in the same situation can get together and talk)
If you would like, I would be happy to contact the relevant people at your college to see what the possibilities are. You can write me at Jeremy@ProfessorsGuide.com telling me what college you are at.
May the memory of your mother be for a blessing.
Jeremy.

” I can study for 4 hours (breaks not included within 4 hours and 40 minutes. What I do is 30 minutes of studying, allowing myself two 45-second breaks within the 30 minutes. Then I do 3 minutes and 30 seconds of resting my head and closing my eyes, letting the neurons in my brain make and strengthen its connections. Then I do 1 minute and 30 seconds of physical activity, like jumping jacks, dancing, etc.”
if you don’t mind, can you tell me more about this? you mean every 30 minutes you take a break? you combine all those resting your head, 30 seconds of physical activity etc and the 45-sec break? I’m confused! but it sounds good.

This is so interesting especially the issue of group studying. I have come to realize that I achieved better grades in modules which I studied together with my course mates than those I did alone. This may not be true for every one, but to me the importance of group studying cannot be overemphasized.

In accordance to #1, I have such a hard time finding a good place to study because of my back problems. The college provides plastic little chairs with our dorm desks to study on and I have such a hard time sitting in them for long study hours. The pain and trying to fix it is distracting. So I try to get to the more comfortable chairs at the library but that involves walking all across campus with a heavy backpack. UGH!

I was pleasantly surprised by this article, usually opinions relating to these topics are way off base from the real world. I’m a triple major, so I spend a lot of time studying! I can not agree enough with the group study suggestion. Yes, sometimes a group can just be a distraction, but that can be solved by not studying with friends. Choose people your not friends with and become friends with them because of the study group. Do NOT make a study group because you are friends. I did this in my Individual Tax class and going into the final only four people had A’s and three of them were in my study group.

I’m also a tutor and supplemental instructor at my college and I can’t stress enough the importance of these people! I helped one student go from a D on her first exam to an A on her final (A- in the class) because the time was booked out twice a week, no matter what, we met and covered everything.

I disagree with the whole study 2 hours for every lecture hour, mostly because it’s completely untrue and unrealistic. I was told the 2 hour rule when I came to college and was so intimidated by it, but really, people have lives and do not spend all that time studying. I’m going to be a senior with a full course load, work three-four jobs (a total of about 50-60 hours a week), am involved in several clubs and volunteer activities, have a social life, and I’m planning a fall 2013 wedding. The day I follow the 2 hour rule is the day I stop affording college! I would say I spend MAYBE 10 hours a week studying/doing homework for a 16 credit course load.

Lastly, talking with professors is beyond important. I was in a car accident only a couple weeks into last semester and it was really tough having to catch up on my own. Thankfully, I had established relationships with all my professors, either from previous classes or clubs, and they were very understanding for the most part.

Lola, you are apparently a superhuman. I seriously suggest that most students do not try to emulate you. My 15 credits last semester required at least a cumulative 15 hours of preparation/study per week; double that for project/paper times, and that was as a junior. I agree that the ‘two hours study per credit hour’ guideline is excessive in most cases, but it really depends on how the class is. I do think that most people can breeze through many freshman classes without any real outside study beyond a pre-test review (if you take good notes) but it seems like developing that kind of study habit will probably come back and bite you later on. Any class where you are expected to keep up on current projects in the field and be able to relate current class topics to ongoing real events (like most of mine were last semester) is usually designed in such a way that if you neglect that outside-the-class inquiry, you won’t really get much out of the class. That isn’t to say you will not pass the class, but down the road you may very well be expected to have a far deeper understanding of the material than you have gained by doing just enough to get by (even with a good grade). This is especially true for any undergraduate classes that directly pertain to your graduate study field (if you intend to go further).

I actually don’t do any of those! WHEEE!!!
It looks like I’m in good shape!
PS, studying with your classmates helps A TON with information exchange and clearing up misunderstandings; it can also help you remember material.
For instance, suppose your friend John was in the middle of talking about how to calculate the area of a lead pipe and Karen spills her piping hot mocha on him. You’re more likely to remember events than information, but when they go hand in hand, you’re more likely to remember both! (Which normally will leave you in fits of laugher in the middle of a test and earn you some very uncomfortable looks from your professor and your fellow classmates, trust me, been there, done that.)

For me personally, studying with others was NOT a good idea. I’m not exactly a “social butterfly” and during my summer classes, while studying with my focus group, I was to focused on what they were thinking of me, if they thought I was stupid for certain questions I asked, and things like that rather than the material. This is of course coming from the type of person that prefers to ask questions after class, rather than during.
Anyway, these are really great tips. So thanks.

I personally found all twelve of these tips to be true for myself, but I also know that those with different learning styles will have other needs. In the end, you have to find out for yourself what works best. The most important thing is to be determined, but flexible. If you really want to study well and pass the class, you will find it much easier to study well and pass the class. Just be flexible in that if one way of studying doesn’t work for you, don’t keep hammering at it just because someone told you that it was the best way of studying. Also, don’t give yourself a detailed study schedule. Do schedule, but loosely, so that you’re less likely to get behind. If you do get behind, just jump in right where you are instead of trying to “catch up” or “make up for lost time.” If my experience is worth anything, nothing sets you up for failure than feeling like you have to do the work you planned for tonight in addition to the work you planned for last night that you failed to accomplish…

Some people learn by taking notes, some by listening to others, some (few) can read alone and absorb the content. Make the best use of your study time by studying in a way that supports your learning style.

2. Talk about what you’re learning.

If there’s any way that really allows for a lasting, comprehensive understanding of new material, it’s conversation. Explaining concepts to others, exploring new ideas, and arguing over perspectives and opinions of new material does wonders for learning. If you want to know and remember your homework, be sure to discuss it with others.

3. Study with people who study like you.

Some people want to learn material as a group, each person focusing on the same subject/chapter and discussing the concepts. Others just want to have someone to sit with, each person working on their own material. Still others don’t study well in groups; they drift frequently into chitchat, and study sessions become social gatherings. Find people who want to study in a format that works for you.

I’m amazed, I have to admit. Rarely do I come across a blog that’s both equally educative and entertaining, and let
me tell you, you’ve hit the nail on the head. The issue is something not enough folks are speaking intelligently about.
Now i’m very happy that I stumbled across this in my hunt for something regarding this.